. >> earlier in the day, president obama met with former arizona congresswoman gabby giffords, a victim of gun violence herself. giffords was in town to lend her voice to guns on capitol hill. the first since the newtown, massacre. nbc's kelly o'donnell has more. >> reporter: it's a distant memory said husband mark kelly, yet gabby giffords halting words. >> too many children. >> reporter: here as a survivor of the tucson assassination attempt that left her partially blind and partially paralyzed. >> you must act. be bold. be courageous. >> reporter: giffords and kelly, both gun owners, want congress to expand background checks to gun shows and private sales to make it harder for criminals and the mentally ill to get weapons. >> my wife would not be sitting in this seat, she would not have been sitting here today, if we have stronger background checks. >> reporter: of all the gun-related ideas on the table, democrats believe universal background checks have the best chance politically. >> we'll stop them from the original purchase. you missed that point completely. i think it's basic. >